Take a moment and look at this picture.
Do you see how the sun’s light just breaks through the clouds? Or maybe the contrast between light and shadow reflected off of hundreds upon hundreds of hills?
Perhaps you even see something that I simply can’t. That’s quite likely actually.
The key thing is that you can see everything in the picture. You may focus on different things, but there’s nothing stopping you from experiencing a sense of wonder at what nature is capable of.
Now what if you were at that location, but there was no light? It was pitch black, and you could barely see anything in front of you.
Would you be able to appreciate it then?
Perhaps. Perhaps not. It depends, right? The main factor would be whether or not you’ve already been there or you’ve already seen what’s possible.
The Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Connection
On the first day, when a person steps into a gym with the slightest inclination of training, it can often be like that pitch black environment. Wondrous sights and possibilities exist around them, but they can’t see it.
It’s too dark.
Often that initial period is difficult. They’re introduced to countless new movements, and some of those may feel quite unnatural initially.
It’s that period where most people quit.
The shame is that they often do it right before dawn. Right before the light of the sun breaks through the clouds. Right before they hit their first breakthrough and received a true sense of what they could possibly achieve.
A shame, indeed.
The beauty of Brazilian Jiu-jitsu lies in the possibility of creating your own expression of it. It’s when you make that shift from simply trying to memorize to attempting to innovate. It’s when you bring your own insight and mix it with tried-and-true concepts and movements in order to create something that is truly unique.
But the only way to get there is grind through all the obstacles thrown in your path.